Looking for a Star
by acciopotter05
Summary: Peter Parker had gone through a hard time since the spider bite and the death of his uncle. After the events of Homecoming night, Peter is suffering with PTSD and pain from past events. Tony Stark has opted to help his young intern with his struggles as Aunt May is away on a business trip. Peter struggles through his joirney of pain, with the help of his mentor.
1. One

**_Chapter one_**

_It was dark; ever so dark in the once well structured building. The roof of the building had fallen and for a moment, everything had gone black. Peter lifted his head as much as he could and groaned. He could feel the pain in his chest around his shattered ribs and the weight on his back from the force of the building. He cried out in pain and panic, hot tears streaming down his bruised and scratched cheeks. _

_"Help! Someone - help! I'm d-down here," he cried. He relaxed his whole body, giving up in no time. Nobody was coming. Nobody was going to help. Peter groaned. _

_"Come on Peter - come on. Come on Spiderman," Peter grunted as he steeled himself and lifted. He groaned and cried out as the pain in his chest and back increased with the pressure of the collapsed roof structure. He screamed painfully and - _

Peter shot up and cried out in pain as his ribs shifted slightly.

"Oh my god, oh my god, ohmygodohmygodohmy-"

He couldn't breath and his chest tightened painfully.

"Kid, come on, kid. Breathe. Come on, breathe with me," a familiar voice was saying gently and Peter felt and gentle hand take his and rest it on the man's chest. He could feel the calm rising and falling of his chest as he breathed in and out slowly, and Peter steeled himself to copy the man's calm, gentle breaths. He took a deep, shuddering breath and let it go slowly. He followed the man's steady breaths until his own breathing was under control and his vision became clear once more. Peter could now recognise the man that sat before him and sighed as he tried to stop the tears that continued to fall.

"M-Mr. Stark," Peter said softly. "What happened? Where am I?"

"You're at the Avengers Compound in the med bay. You stopped the Vulture from stealing tech out of my plane last night. Don't you remember?" Mr. Stark told him gently. Peter groaned at the memory and flopped back onto his pillow - all the while cringing at the pain this action caused him.

"I also blew up your plane in case you don't remember," he mumbled.

"Yeah that's not important. What i really want to know is how you got three shattered ribs, a crazily bruised spine and a broken leg. FRIDAY ran some tests and has proved that those particular injuries are not from the plane crash," Mr. Stark said, eying Peter with a look of concern and ... something else Peter couldn't quite place. Peter closed his eyes at the memory of the warehouse and whispered softly,

"I don't want to talk about it."

"I know that whatever happened was the cause of your freaky nightmare and panic attack, Peter. This is very clearly something we need to talk about."

"I- I don't ... I can't - "

"It's okay, Peter. Take your time," Mr. Stark said softly. Peter took a deep, shuddering breath and stared up at the ceiling.

"I followed him f-from Homecoming t-to a w-warehouse. He had told me n-not to follow him a-and I didn't listen. He was t-talking to me and then he b-brought out his wings and I-I thought he was trying to get me so I jumped out - out of the way and he didn't get me. B-but then he said that he wasn't actually trying to get me and he started to leave and then the building collapsed and oh god! I couldn't breath and it was crushing me and nobody was there and I-I couldn't-" Peter felt a comforting hand on his shoulder and he looked down from the ceiling, calming down slightly (he hadn't realised he'd been hyperventilating until then). He searched Mr. Stark's eyes - which were filled with concern and ... guilt?

"How did you get out?" Mr. Stark asked hesitantly.

"I lifted it."

"Wha- how?"

"I had to," Peter shuddered.

"I'm so sorry, kid." Peter stares at him in confusion.

"What are you apologising for?" he asked incredulously.

"It's all my fault you were out there without the suit. If you had had the suit, I would have known that you were in danger. I could have helped you out of that mess," Mr. Stark said with a confliction that Peter could not understand.

"You didn't know that I was going to go after him, though, Mr. Stark," Peter said softly. "You couldn't have known."

"But i should have counted on it." Mr. Stark sighed, then stood from his seat. "I'll leave you to get some rest. I'll have FRIDAY let me know if you have another nightmare, okay?" Peter day back against his pillow again and sighed in resignation.

"Okay." Mr. Stark closed the door softly behind him as he left, and Peter closed his eyes, immediatly drifting off to sleep.


	2. Two

**Chapter two **

**A/N: Hey guys, I'm kind of new to this so i'm sorry if it's a little bit meh ... :p**

**Anyways, please review the chapters**

**If you don't have anything nice or helpfully critical to say, then please refrain from saying it :)**

Peter awoke late in the afternoon the next day. He had no recollection of any nightmares that may have happened after Mr. Stark left, though he was sure there had been more. Peter pulled the blankets over his head sleepily and groaned. There was a knock at the door and a tentative voice from behind it.

"Hey, Pete. You awake?" came Mr. Stark's voice. The door opened and light flooded the dark room.

"Time 's it?"

"Three thirty in the afternoon. You slept for a long time. How are your ribs?" Mr. Stark entered the room and turned on the lights. Peter groaned at the sudden brightness against his eyes. He sat up and groaned at the dull pain in his ribs.

"Better. Just bruised now, I think," he ran a hand through his hair, mussing it up even more than sleep had. "I should get going - I have school tomorrow and I need -"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa - slow down Underoos. You're not going anywhere," Mr. Stark held up a hand and raised an eyebrow at the kid.

"But I -"

"No buts. Your aunt isn't here to take care of you at the moment, so you can't go home by yourself. And you're injured so you can't go to school. I think your only other option is to stay here until May gets back." Peter stares at the older man in both frustration and confusion. He was healing already; it _wasn't a problem. _But by the look on his face, Mr. Stark wasn't going to budge. Peter sighed resignedly.

"Fine." Mr. Stark smiled at this, then stood.

"I'll leave you to get dressed and come out for food, okay?"

"Okay." Mr. Stark closed the door softly behind him and Peter looked around the room. He must've been moved to a spare room while he was sleeping, because he was no longer in the med bay. He pulled back the blankets and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He tentatively placed his feet on the floor, careful to not put too much weight on his still healing leg, then walked carefully to the closet. He picked out a plain black t-shirt and jeans, then walked over to the bathroom to change.

He stood there, now changed out of his pyjamas, staring at himself in the mirror. His face was pale and his eyes gaunt, and he thought to himself: _This is all your fault; everything. Ben, Liz's dad, everything. It was all his fault; a curse. He was a curse. _

Peter let out a strangled sob and let himself slide down to the floor and cradle his head in his hands.

"Peter," the automated voice of FRIDAY rang through the room. "You are distraught, I am calling Boss." Peter didn't understand why Mr. Stark would come just because he was crying, or why FRIDAY would call him, but he was too drained to answer or protest, so he sat there with his head in his hands until a knock came to the bathroom door.

"Peter? I'm coming in, kid," came Mr. Stark's voice and then the door was swinging open and the older man was crouched next to Peter, his arm around his shoulders. "What's the matter, Peter? What is it?" Peter just shook his head and let out a small sob that he had failed to contain. "Come on, Pete; I can't help you if you don't tell what's wrong."

"You can't help," Peter sobbed into his arm. "A curse - I'm a curse and it's all m-my fault -"

"Don't say that, Peter. You are not a curse," Mr. Stark said firmly, but not unkindly. "What is your fault?"

"Everything!" Peter lifted his head to look Mr. Stark in the eyes and sobbed, "My parents, Ben, everything. It's all my fault that they're gone and I-I can't -"

"Hey, hey, stop that. None of this is your fault."

"B-Ben. It's my fault he's gone." He didn't know why, but Peter felt he had to prove it to Mr. Stark; prove that at least some of the wreckage that was his life was his fault. "We h-had an argument and I l-left. I was s-so angry. A man p-passed me on the streets and he had a g-gun. I was s-so mad t-that I didn't stop him, and then I heard Ben y-yell at the man and then a g-gun s-shot," Peter sobbed. "It was all my fault. I could have stopped him, I could have done anything to make sure he didn't get that far, but I didn't and now Ben's gone and it's all my fault." This last sentence made Peter brake down completely, and he collapsed into the older man's arms, sobbing into his chest. Mr. Stark rubbed a gentle hand up and down Peter's back soothingly, not saying anything until the boy had calmed down.

"You couldn't have helped what happened, Peter. It's not your fault, okay. Hey, look at me," he said, gently lifting the boys chin so he could look him in the eyes. "None of this is your fault." Peter just stared into the older man's eyes, looking for ... something; he found confidence and truth lying in the man's intense, but kind, stare. The boy sighed in resignation and buried his face against Mr. Stark's chest once more.

"Thank you," he said softly.

"That's okay, Pete. Are you ready to come out for some food, or do you want to stay in here?"

"I-I am a little hungry," Peter said, pulling away from the man and wiping his eyes furiously.

"Alright, let's go, then." Peter stood and watched as Mr. Stark started to walk out of the room, stopped and turned to face Peter. "You coming, kid?"

"Yeah," Peter started after the man, smiling to himself as he went. And he realised, that for the first time in a long while, he was starting to actually feel better. And it was all thanks to the billionaire superhero walking in front of him.


End file.
